Saint Joseph Catholic Church

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Pope Leo XIV today named Bishop Richard Moth of Arundel and Brighton as the new archbishop of Westminster, England.

The 67-year-old prelate was ordained to the priesthood in 1982 and ordained a bishop in 2009, serving as military ordinary from 2009-16 until his transfer to Arundel and Brighton.

Bishop Moth succeeds Cardinal Vincent Nichols, 80, who has led the Archdiocese of Westminster since 2009.

The Archdiocese of New York will sell the land beneath a luxury hotel to the hotel’s owner for $490 million.

Cardinal Timothy Dolan recently announced that the archdiocese is entering into mediation in lieu of court proceedings and is raising funds for abuse settlements with 1,300 plaintiffs.

Addressing a UN meeting on refugees, a Vatican diplomat said on December 17 that “the safe and dignified return of refugees to their home countries must be guaranteed. Indeed, it is vital to highlight that those who wish to return home should be able to do so safely.”

Archbishop Ettore Balestrero, apostolic nuncio and Permanent Observer to the United Nations and other international organizations in Geneva, Switzerland, said that “too many lives are still being shattered by violence, conflict, and persecution. Therefore, while enhancing protection efforts remains essential, finding ways to address the root causes of forced displacement has become an even greater priority.”

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Solidarity Fund for the Church in Africa released its 2024 annual report yesterday.

The fund reported $3,924,488 in revenue and $3,335,534 in expenses in 2024. Most of the revenue ($3,702,026) came from national collections; the rest, from investment income.

78% of the expenses ($2,611,460) was allocated to grants and donations. Other expenses included program costs (14%), fundraising expenses (5%), and administrative costs (3%). (According to Charity Navigator’s guidelines, a charity should spend no more than 30% on fundraising and administrative expenses.)

Because revenues exceeded expenses, the fund’s net assets rose from $3,739,661 to $4,486,473 over the course of the year.

The bishop on the front line of the military conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo spoke of bleak conditions in refugee camps and the death of displaced persons from hunger.

Some who have fled the advance of the M23 paramilitary group are “crammed into refugee camps, others in stadiums and open spaces, exposed to the harsh conditions of this rainy season, without blankets, food, or medicine,” Bishop Sébastien Joseph Muyengo Mulombe of Uvira told Vatican News.

A bishop who administers two dioceses in Burkina Faso spoke of the toll wrought by Islamist insurgents there.

“The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church,” said Bishop Théophile Naré, quoting Tertullian. “The key word is resilience: persevering in prayer, hope, and doing good.”

“If the enemy was thinking of snuffing out Christianity, it’s wasting its time: Christianity in Africa is spreading,” he added. The prelate recounted an incident in August when the women of a parish formed a human shield around their parish priest to protect him from an attack during Mass.

Burkina Faso, a West African nation of 23.0 million (map), is 56% Muslim, 26% Christian (16% Catholic), and 17% ethnic religionist.

Regional governments in Pakistan have “implemented special measures to ensure maximum security near Christian churches” at Christmas, the Fides news agency reported.

“There is widespread fear of terrorist attacks in Pakistani society,” said Father Qaisar Feroz, OFM Cap, communications officer for the bishops’ conference. “The government’s plan for alerting and protecting sensitive locations also includes churches, especially during the Christmas season.”

Islam is the official religion of the South Asian nation of 252 million (map), the fifth most populous in the world. 95% of Pakistan’s people are Muslim; 2% are Christian, and 1% are Hindu.